I’d like to take a moment to thank everyone who’s ever helped me along the way – the fans, the bookers and bartenders, my selfless fellow musicians and writers; everyone who’s ever put me up or put up with me, bought a record or offered a quiet word of encouragement. I accept the honor on behalf of an understanding family that excuses my surrender to the pen and paper, and a never-ending string of dive-bar dominoes. The calling is a blessing and a curse, an uphill battle that gets steeper everyday it seems, but unthinkable without you.

I thought a tour-free summer would guarantee me poolside Manhattans but it is not turning out that way.
The biggest news I have is that I’ve begun recording my first solo album. Again trading time between Asheville, NC and Portland, OR, it’s a bit of a departure from what you may have come to know as Drunken Prayer. Heavier in parts, lighter in others, undressed out of necessity. I haven’t been satisfied with the precious song since about last November, change done come. I’ve taken to thinking in all caps and typing with my forehead. I’m playing all the instruments on this one too.

This week I’m turning in a grant proposal for a documentary about turn-of-the-millennium era Asheville rock scene. Titled The Decline of Western North Carolina, it’s loosely based around the life and death of Vincent’s Ear coffee house. Logline: An eccentric mountain town loses its creative center of gravity, as seen through the eyes of a now far flung Rock and Roll community. More details to come on that after I hear back about the grant in October. Until then stay away from me unless you want to get interviewed about a virtually uncharted music scene from 20 years ago.

Last weekend the Western North Carolina Paranormal Society had our first Sasquatch and UFO hunting expedition of the summer, deep in the woods of southern Appalachia. My experiment to attract cryptids by playing the new Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper remixes and outtakes proved fruitless.

Below are my scheduled shows over the next few months.
Plans to relocate to Berlin are temporarily on hold.

It’s been a little over a year since Freakwater released one of our favorite albumsof last year, Scheherezade. One of the highlights of the album was the song “Missionfield”, actually a cover of a song by Drunken Prayer, the project of musician Morgan Geer, now a member of Freakwater. Geer’s story is one for the books, his relationship with the band starting out ambiguously and ending with creative influence. Last year, I had the chance to speak with him about playing in Freakwater and offering his creative energy to the band as a musician, composer, and music video director. Read some bits from our conversation below, edited for length and clarity.

Since I Left You: How did your relationship with Freakwater start?

Morgan Geer: With me and my best friend at the time. She had a cassette someone made her that was a mixtape. There weren’t any band names or titles. My favorite song was [what turned out to be] “My Old Drunk Friend”. For years, I was obsessed with trying to find who did this song. This was kind of pre-internet. Any time I would run into someone who was familiar with alt-country, I would ask them whether they knew the name if I recited some of the lyrics.

Nobody knew until I was sitting in Nashville playing with a honky tonk band. There was a bass player named Dave [David Wayne Gay], and he knew [because he was in Freakwater!] I couldn’t believe it. I became kind of a super fan after that. A couple years later, Catherine [Irwin] asked me to help with her Cut You With a Switch solo record. Around that time, Bloodshot [Records] picked up my cover of Public Enemy’s “Bring the Noise”, and they put that on one of their compilations. Me and Dave and Catherine toured South by Southwest with that. A couple years later, I did a couple songs with Janet [Beveridge Bean]. In the meantime, Janet asked if I would help them with Scheherazade. I’m still with them [laughs].

SILY: What does playing with them allow you to do that playing with Drunken Prayer doesn’t allow you to do, and vice versa?

MG: I like playing with other people because you see music through their eyes. You can be kind of a tool for them to help someone else realize their vision. I like doing that with anybody as long as I’m a little sympathetic to the music. With Freakwater, as a fan, you have opinions. When you’re a deep fan, you feel like a sense of ownership because they’ve been with you through different times in your life. I have an opinion of the direction I want them to go. This is an opportunity to be in the band and interpret their vision and get free reign. I was able to be a kid in a candy store with their songs. Having not written any of them, I wasn’t weighed down by the personal experience that drives you to write. Freakwater’s not really much of a stretch from what I do with Drunken Prayer. They’re also not sticklers for technical ability, which is nice. I like playing with them. It’s liberating, in a sense.

MG: It was surreal. They didn’t tell me about it, and I didn’t find out until I saw the final list of the songs in order. I thought it was a typo. We had so many great songs. Out of 20, they only recorded a dozen songs, so they didn’t need to cover it. I’m glad it’s been well-received. I’m pretty happy the way it turned out.

SILY: Did you not even know they had recorded it?

MG: I had no clue. I wasn’t there. They probably didn’t want me to talk them out of it. They probably wanted to be liberated from my influence. My version is more fleshed out. They wanted to play it like it was their song. They just took some words and Freakwatered it up.

MG: I made one video without any kind of guidance. It was like too much with other stuff they had done. It was kind of violent. They wanted it to be less violent and less literal and narrative. We came up with a new thing. I used almost all found footage and whatever cameras they had at home filming their mouths singing the words. It was many late nights editing pieces together of found footage, going through hours and hours. I like doing that kind of thing. It’s tedious, but it’s kind of fun tedious.

I’m just now wrapping up all of my traveling I began in 2016 with Freakwater and The Handsome Family. After a few weeks in Portland, OR recording a new album of originals and a live solo performance, I’m hitting the road once again.

We’ll be winding up the rest of the touring year supporting our beloved Handsome Family down the American West Coast and through the Southwestern desert. It’s a tremendous thrill to do this tour – they are truly one of the most interesting acts working today and we’re lucky to be on the bill.
Listen to their interviews on Fresh Air here and on Sound Opinions here.
Here’s the itinerary:
11.30 Bellingham, WA – Green Frog
12.01 Seattle, WA – The Triple Door
12.02 Portland, OR – Doug Fir Lounge
12.03 Arcata, CA – Humboldt Brews
12.07 San Francisco, CA – Great American Music Hall
12.08 Felton, CA – Don Quixote’s International Music Hall
12.09 Los Angeles, CA – Bootleg Bar
12.10 Pioneertown, CA – Pappy & Harriet’s
12.13 Tucson, AZ – Club Congress

Once again I have the honor of playing with and opening for one of the most innovative acts working today. I’ll be on tour with Freakwater for the next couple months in The Old World. Do yourselves a favor and go to see a show or buy their newest record, Scheherazade, available on Bloodshot Records, and mine, The Devil and The Blues from Fluff and Gravy Records.

I’m very excited to announce two big tours with acts I consider giants of my Art-House-Country world. First it’s Europe in the fall where I’ll be playing with Freakwater. Then I revisit the West coast with The Handsome Family supporting their new album, Unseen.

A few months ago we asked fans to submit clips of themselves wearing “Hello My Name Is” stickers for our new video. The response was overwhelming and the result is a happy thing. We hope you enjoy it. If you’re reading this, chances are you’re probably in it.

Posted on: October 28th, 2015 by drunkenmaster

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